The New Roommate
by singntheshower
Summary: "Are you sure it's a chick?" Puck asked, taking the letter from Finn's hands. "I've never heard of any dudes with the name Rachel," Finn replied. NYU juniors Finn and Puck are a little surprised when they learn their new roommate is a girl. A/U


A/N: Here's a new little one shot! I don't own anything! It's A/U with Puck and Finn being from Lima and having gone to high school together. They're also juniors at NYU. Rachel attended Carmel and was in show choir. She's a freshman at NYU. And just FYI: their dorm room is more like a small apartment. They actually have dorms like this at my school, including a small kitchen. That's all you need to know! Happy reading :)

The New Roommate

"Are you sure it's a chick?" Puck asked, taking the letter from Finn's hands.

"I've never heard of any dudes with the name Rachel," Finn replied. They were sitting on the couch, nursing beers and watching ESPN. The letter with the name of their new roommate had come that afternoon. Puck tossed it onto the coffee table in front of them. It landed right next to the extra large pizza that they had just devoured.

"Why the hell did Sam have to leave?" Puck asked. "We wouldn't need a new roommate then."

"He had to drop out and help take care of his family. Something about his dad losing his job," Finn replied.

"It just fucking sucks," Puck complained. "We were all fucking stoked getting into the same college. The last two years were fucking perfect with just us hanging out all the time. Now we're gonna have some chick come in and screw shit up."

"You cuss more than anyone else I've ever known," Finn said, chuckling.

"It's my only flaw," Puck said with a smirk, making Finn laugh.

"I'd say you being an asshole is a flaw," Finn said.

"Fuck you," Puck replied with a glare. "But seriously, who the hell comes up with the damn dorm assignments? They couldn't just stick some dude with us?"

"Maybe it was just some random computer thing," Finn suggested.

"Well, whatever the fuck it was, I'm not happy about it," Puck huffed. "_Unless_ she's hot. Then I can deal."

"Is that all you ever think about? Sex?" Finn asked, rolling his eyes.

"Most of the time, yeah," Puck admitted, not sounding ashamed. "What's Quinn up to?"

Finn shrugged. "She's mad at me again," he said nonchalantly.

"What for now?" Puck asked.

"I didn't want to go where she wanted for dinner. She said I never take her feelings into account and that I'm selfish," Finn replied in a huff.

"You two fight all the fucking time," Puck commented.

"Tell me about it," Finn huffed. "It's actually getting worse. I mean, ever since freshman year she's been on my ass… Now it's just ridiculous."

"That's why I don't date," Puck said with a smirk.

"You don't date because you like having sex with different people," Finn replied.

"That and the fact that chicks are fucking nuts," Puck countered. Finn just rolled his eyes, wondering how he'd been able to put up with Puck since high school.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

NYU wasn't Rachel Berry's first choice of colleges, but since she hadn't gotten into NYADA, it was the only other option. It was either go to NYU or don't stay in New York. And Rachel needed to be in New York. That's where Broadway was, after all. She had just graduated high school and was eager to begin her college career.

She had arrived on campus a little after seven in the morning and received her dorm room key from a receptionist that didn't seem to be a morning person. Well, not everyone could be peppy like Rachel Berry this early in the morning.

She waited until she was in the hallway before opening the letter with the location and name of her roommates.

She was a little surprised to see that she would be sharing a dorm room with two guys. Noah Puckerman and Finn Hudson. And her dorm was on the fifth floor. Unloading her stuff from her car was going to be difficult.

She drove across campus to the Harrington Building where she'd be living for the next year. She smiled when she found a parking spot that was relatively close to the building. She then remembered that it wasn't even eight in the morning on a Saturday. Everyone else was probably sleeping still.

She only had three large boxes of things and a gigantic rolling suitcase full of clothes, but she crammed them with so much stuff that they were quite heavy. She slung her purse over her shoulder before grabbing the first heavy box from the back seat.

By the time she walked in the building, she was already panting a little.

She then faced a dilemma. She absolutely _hated_ elevators and other cramped spaces, but there was no way that she'd be able to carry all three boxes to the fifth floor and live to tell about it. Rachel was strong, but she was only about 102 pounds and the three boxes could very easily weigh more than her if put together.

With shaky hands, which didn't help with holding the box steady, Rachel walked into the elevator. As soon as the doors shut, she closed her eyes and tried to do what her therapist told her – imagine she was in a wide open field with plenty of space.

Rachel smiled when she heard the elevator ding, signaling that she had made it to her floor. She adjusted the box in her grip before walking out of the elevator and heading down the hallway. Her room was 516, which was quite a distance down the hallway if you were carrying a heavy box.

With a huff, she set the box down once she reached the room. It thudded against the floor loudly and Rachel silently hoped that she hadn't disturbed any of her neighbors. She grabbed her dorm room key out of her pocket and put it in the lock, twisting it to the side. The door opened easily and Rachel peeked inside.

She could tell that the dorm was small, but it would be easier to clean.

She bent down and picked up the box again, and attempted to walk through the door.

There was a problem.

The box was too wide to fit through the door.

"You've got to be kidding me," she moaned. Rachel glared at the doorway, cursing it for being so narrow. But Rachel refused to be deterred by a narrow doorway. The box would fit through.

So, she tried turning it crookedly, hoping that the awkward angle would help it fit.

It didn't work.

Then, she tried turning it sideways and squeezing it through the door. She was breathing heavily at this point since the box was so heavy. Rachel then resorted to punching the corners of the box, trying to round them so the box would fit. She smiled when the front of the box fit through the doorway. She continued pushing it, making it wedge itself in the doorway.

Rachel let go for a second, but the box was so tightly crammed in the doorway that it didn't fall. She glared at the box and gathered her strength, pushing it with all of her might.

It fit through the doorway.

And then spilled onto the floor with a crash.

If she didn't wake up anyone before, she definitely did now.

She ran into the room and started to pick up the things that had fallen out of the box. Her shampoo bottle had skid into the tiny living room area, the cord to her curling iron had come untangled, and numerous other things had scattered everywhere.

She threw her things unceremoniously into the box and jumped when the sound of heavy footsteps came toward her.

"What the hell?" a sleepy-sounding voice said.

Rachel looked up and froze.

Standing in front of her was easily the most handsome man she had ever seen in her life. He was tall, _so_ tall, and had messy brown hair. She could see his dimples as he yawned. He had on pajama pants and a t-shirt and worethe outfit _very _well.

"Wait… are you Rachel?" he asked after clearing his throat. She was brought out of her daze.

"What?... Oh, um, yes. Yes. I'm Rachel Berry," she said, standing up quickly. She held out her hand. Finn looked confused but stepped forward and shook her hand, noticing how soft it was.

"I'm Finn… So, uh, I thought someone was breaking in or something," Finn said, stepping back and rubbing the back of his neck.

"That was me. I'm so sorry," Rachel apologized firmly. "The box wouldn't fit through the door and it was heavy and being difficult and then everything just fell out."

Finn looked around and saw the things all over the floor.

"I can see that," he said with a chuckle. "Let me help you." He bent over and grabbed a hair brush, a slipper, and a container of floss before handing it to her.

"Thank you," she said, tossing the things into the box. Finn then spotted a tiny box that was next to the couch and grabbed it. His face grew red when he realized it was tampons. He handed it to her quickly and saw her face get red, too.

"Thanks," she murmured, embarrassed.

"No problem," Finn said. "Is that all of your stuff?" he asked, motioning to the box.

Rachel shook her head. "I've still got two more large boxes and my suitcase in my car," she replied.

"Do you need help with those? I mean, that one kind of gave you trouble," he said with a smirk. Her heart stopped at the sight of his smile. She could also feel herself turning into goo.

"I already woke you up. I'd feel even worse if you carried my heavy boxes up here," she said.

"It's cool," Finn insisted. "I'm kinda wide awake now and don't really have anything to do."

"That would be very nice of you, Finn," Rachel said with a smile. Finn smiled widely in return.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Somehow, Finn managed to carry _both_ of her boxes at the same time, so she only had to pull her rolling pink suitcase behind her.

He teased her a little when she had to close her eyes in the elevator because of her fear of tiny spaces. Rachel wasn't offended; she knew her fear was a tiny bit silly.

When they got back to the dorm, Finn somehow managed to get the boxes in the room without spilling their contents everywhere. Rachel was impressed. He carried the two boxes into the hallway while Rachel dragged the other one and her suitcase. Of course, they wouldn't fit in the doorway, so Rachel decided to unpack them from their place in the hallway.

"Thank you so much for your help, Finn," Rachel said from inside her quaint little room.

"Don't mention it. You want some coffee? I can make some," he offered.

"That would be great," Rachel said with a smile.

"Cool," Finn replied. "I'll bring you a cup when I'm done. You want milk or anything in it?"

"I'll just take it black. I'm a vegan, so no dairy products for me. Unless you have dairy-free creamer," she said.

"Sorry, no," Finn laughed. "I'll be back in a few."

Finn walked back into the tiny living room and Rachel found herself fanning her face.

That boy was gorgeous.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Two hours later, Rachel's things were unpacked in the tiny room. She sat back on her bed – that was now covered in a pink comforter – and admired her decorations.

She had a picture of Barbra on her dresser and smiled at it adoringly. She also had her cat calendar on her closet door that was currently displaying a cute black and white kitten that was in a basket. She also had her dream board hanging on the wall with more pictures of Barbra, all of New York's best theaters, and Tony awards on display.

Her pink laptop was already on her desk, all ready to go, with notebooks, pens, and pencils at its side. The empty coffee cup was near the computer as well. She smiled at it, thinking of how sweet Finn was. She could hear the sounds of his video games in the living room and smiled wider.

She was going to love living with him.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

"Dude, I swear, if you fucking delete my player profile again, I'll kick your ass," Puck warned before walking into the tiny kitchen.

"I didn't," Finn called after him. "Chill." After dying again on level eleven, Finn paused the game and walked into the kitchen. Puck was leaning against the counter and eating a bowl of cereal.

"Did you know Rachel's here?" Finn asked.

"When the hell did she show up? It's morning," Puck said.

"It's 11:30," Finn said with a smirk. "She got here around eight and dropped one of her boxes. I thought someone broke in."

"Is she hot?" Puck asked. Finn opened his mouth to say something but then shut it quickly and shrugged. "Dude, I won't tell Quinn you said anything. Besides, she goes on and on all the time about how sexy she thinks that guy that played Thor is."

Finn huffed, knowing he was right.

"Yeah, dude. She's hot," Finn said, trying to hide his smile.

"Awesome," Puck said with his mouth full.

"But you can't try and sleep with her. That'll make things totally awkward," Finn said.

"You just don't want me to sleep with her 'cause you wanna sleep with her," Puck accused with a smirk.

"No. I've got… I've got Quinn. You know that," Finn said, looking down at the ground.

"Can you honestly sit there and tell me that you're happy with Quinn?" Puck asked.

Finn looked confused. "Dude, why the hell are you always tryin' to make me break up with Quinn?" he asked.

"Sorry if I wanna see my best friend happy," Puck replied before chugging the milk in his bowl. Puck put the bowl in the sink and then went to walk out of the kitchen when he ran into Rachel.

"Oh, sorry!" she said quickly.

"It's cool," Puck said. He looked up and down at her appreciatively. Her legs were endless in her tiny skirt and he could see the outline of her modest cleavage thanks to the shirt she was wearing. Rachel noticed him ogling at her and took a step back.

"I assume you're Noah?" she said, putting her hand out in front of her. "I'm Rachel. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Call me Puck," Puck said, shaking her hand with a strange smile on his face. Rachel assumed that he was trying to be sexy. Well, he was cute, but was trying a bit too hard.

"I prefer to call you Noah," she said with a smile. "It's a nice name."

"You can call me whatever you wanna call me," Puck said. Rachel held in a laugh.

"That's good to know," she said.

Finn watched the exchange with a little bit of unease. Sure, Rachel was pretty. Well, actually she was gorgeous, so Finn could see why Puck was interested. But was she really falling for this act? Was it possible that she was attracted to Puck?

Finn then wondered why he cared. They had only just met.

But she seemed really sweet. And her smile was perfect and made him want to smile. And her laugh was infectious and awesome.

And her body was smokin'.

Finn then had to remind himself about Quinn again.

He came out of his daze and saw that Rachel was bent slightly over, peering into the fridge. Puck was standing behind her, obviously staring at her ass. Finn walked over to him and smacked him on the back of the head.

"What the hell was that for?" Puck whispered.

"You know what," Finn said with a glare. Finn knew how Puck was – a pro at the hump and dump – and Finn really wanted to protect Rachel from that.

"Looks like I'm going to need to go to the store. Do you guys need me to grab anything?" Rachel said, turning around.

"How old are you?" Puck asked.

"Why does that matter?" Rachel replied, looking confused.

"Well, I need beer and if you're not old enough, I gotta go get it," he explained.

"Well, sorry. I'm only eighteen," she said. "Won't be nineteen until December."

"You're a freshman?" Finn asked.

"Yes," Rachel replied. "Music Theater major. What about the two of you?"

"We're juniors," Finn said. "I'm a Music major. Puck's an Athletic Training major."

"That's awesome. What are you studying Music for?" Rachel asked, genuinely curious.

"I wanna teach," Finn said.

"That's very inspiring, Finn," Rachel said with a smile.

"Thanks," Finn said, blushing a bit. "What about you?"

"Well, I've dreamed of being on Broadway since I could say it," she explained. "I hope to earn my degree and then start auditioning."

"You any good?" Puck asked.

"I'm fantastic," she said with a confident smile.

"You better sing for us then," Puck said.

"I will later. I promise," she said. "But for now, I need to get some food."

Finn and Puck both offered to go with her. Finn just wanted to be nice and help her carry the bags. Finn knew that Puck wanted to go to get beer and impress Rachel so that he could get into her pants.

Douche bag.

Since a grocery store was only two blocks from campus, they walked. Puck shared stories and was actually making Rachel laugh. Her laugh was awesome, but Finn didn't like that Puck was making her laugh. He knew that it was just a part of Puck's plan.

Finn watched as she walked, noticing how light on her feet she was. She also walked quickly, like you had to do in New York.

She ended up getting _a lot_ of fruit and this weird looking stuff that she told Finn was tofu. Finn walked off on his own and grabbed some bacon, hamburger patties, and other stuff that he and Puck liked to eat. Puck grabbed a big case of beer.

With their purchases in hand, they walked back to their dorm.

Once again, Rachel closed her eyes on the elevator.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

"I thought you couldn't have animal products?" Finn asked as Rachel put a carton of eggs into the fridge. He didn't grab those.

"I got them so that I could make you and Noah some of my famous banana bread," Rachel explained.

"You don't have to do that," Finn said.

"I insist," Rachel said with a smile. "The both of you have made my first day in a new city fantastic." Finn couldn't help but smile back.

"Where are you from?" he asked.

"Oh, this little town called Lima in Ohio," she said wistfully as she put away some of the fruit.

"Seriously?" Finn asked, sounding surprised.

"Yes. Why?" Rachel asked.

"We're from Lima, too. Me and Puck, I mean," Finn said. "We went to McKinley."

"What a small world," Rachel said with a smile. "I went to Carmel."

"Your school always kicked our ass at basketball," Finn said.

Rachel laughed. "Sorry about that, I guess," she said with a smile.

"It's not your fault," Finn said, returning the smile.

They stayed in the kitchen in a companionable silence for a while as Rachel continued to put away the food.

"I know this is a lot to ask, but I was wondering if you could show me where the campus bookstore is and maybe help me pick out my books tomorrow," Rachel said, looking at him hopefully.

"Sorry, but I can't tomorrow," Finn said. "I have to meet Quinn, my… my girlfriend." Finn noticed that Rachel's smile faltered a little at the sound of this news. Her shoulders also slouched for a second before she stood up straight again.

"That's fine," Rachel said quickly, forcing her smile to return. "I'll just ask Noah if he can take me." Rachel turned back around and didn't see Finn frown a little.

_Rachel alone with Puck. This couldn't be good_, he thought.

While Finn thought that, Rachel was chastising herself.

_Of course he has a girlfriend. Anyone that handsome and sweet would be taken_.

"I'm going to go read a little and then I'll start on that banana bread for the two of you," Rachel said with a small smile.

"Sounds good," Finn replied. Rachel then walked out of the kitchen and into her room, shutting the door behind her.

Finn huffed before running a hand through his hair.

Was it bad that he'd rather be at the bookstore with Rachel than out with Quinn?

Probably.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Okay, so Rachel's banana bread was probably one of the best things that Finn had ever eaten. Rachel was surprised that both he and Puck could eat the entire loaf in less than ten minutes. It took longer than that to make it.

Just when Finn thought Rachel couldn't get anymore awesome, she sang for them. Finn was expecting her to just sound _okay_ or something.

She brought her laptop into the living room.

"I'll be singing Celine Dion's 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now'," Rachel said with an excited smile. "Hold onto your hats, boys."

She hit play and the karaoke version of the song started to play. Finn recognized it from his mom listening to it a few times before.

Then, she sang.

Finn and Puck were _floored_. Finn wondered how a voice like _that_ could come out of someone so tiny. His heart was beating funny and goosebumps were covering every inch of his body.

As soon as the last note played, she closed her laptop.

"So, what did you think?" she asked, looking from Finn to Puck.

"That was so hot," Puck said.

Rachel blushed a little. "Well, thank you," she said. "What did you think, Finn?"

"You have the most incredible voice I've ever heard," he said honestly.

"Thank you," Rachel said with a breathtaking smile.

"You'll definitely be on Broadway, babe," Puck said. Finn's stomach clenched at hearing Puck call her "babe," but he couldn't say anything. She didn't belong to him.

Rachel beamed at the both of them.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Lunch with Quinn the next day was kind of awkward. She didn't yell at him, which Finn was grateful for, but she was still kind of mad at him about the other day. Sure, he cared about Quinn and everything, but to call someone selfish because they didn't want to eat Mexican food was just crazy.

When Finn got back to the apartment, he was surprised to see that Rachel and Puck still weren't back from the bookstore yet; they had left before he did.

He turned on his Xbox and started to play _Call of Duty_ while he waited.

He even considered deleting Puck's player profile.

He heard Rachel's laugh before the door opened.

Puck and Rachel came in, each holding a bag of books in their hands.

"What took you guys so long?" Finn asked curiously. "Did they not have all of your books or something?"

"No, they had them all," Rachel said. "Noah was kind enough to take me for ice cream afterwards. There's this place right here on campus with vegan ice cream."

"Oh," Finn said, turning back to his video game. "Cool."

"Scoot over," Puck said, walking over to the couch. "We haven't played one on one for a while."

"I'll be in my room if you need me," Rachel said, grabbing her second bag of books before walking into her room.

Finn played against Puck rather aggressively.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Classes officially started on Tuesday and Finn was pretty happy with how things were gonna go. He was a junior, so he knew how things ran. He also had professors that he's already had before, so he knew how they graded and what they expected in each class. Plus, he still had a year before he had to worry about graduating.

Puck skipped one of his classes the first day, earning a lecture from Rachel about how important attending classes is. Finn sat back with a smile on his face.

"Crazy Berry's kind of hot," Puck muttered.

Finn resisted the urge to take off his shoe and throw it at Puck's head.

Rachel came home pissed off the next week.

"_Apparently_ the theater department doesn't award leading roles to freshman," she complained to Finn. "I listened to the auditions for the leads and their pitch was off the entire song! I have perfect pitch! Perfect! And yet I can't star in the play because I'm only a freshman. You would think that talent actually mattered!"

"I'm sorry, Rach," Finn said. Rachel smiled at the nickname that she had acquired. She'd never had a nickname before. "But next year you can blow everyone away."

"I know that," she said grudgingly. "I just thought that I'd finally be able to be the star, you know? Agents actually come to the school's productions and sign people for contracts. I'd always dreamed that would be me."

"It still can be," Finn said. "You just have to wait until next year."

Rachel took a deep breath. "I'm not that patient, you know," Rachel murmured.

"Yeah, I know," Finn laughed. "I thought you were going to kill me three days ago when I wasn't ready fast enough."

"Well, I had only allotted myself an hour to go to the grocery store and you were making me run late," she replied, trying to hide her smile.

"You just need to learn how to relax," Finn said with a smile. "Try being spontaneous sometime. It's actually fun."

"I like to plan things," Rachel said.

"That's an understatement," Finn said, remembering the huge poster that Rachel had taped to her wall with her daily tasks and everything. She smacked Puck on the arm when he asked if she set aside time to use the bathroom.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

They were three weeks into the semester and Rachel still hadn't met Quinn. She never came to the apartment, which Rachel thought was weird since she and Finn had been dating for a while. Rachel tried to make herself not care about Finn and his relationship so much, but it was difficult. He was nothing but kind to her and she liked being around him. But Finn was off limits and she wasn't the kind of girl that tried to steal someone's boyfriend.

So, over the last week, she tried to distance herself emotionally from Finn.

At the same time, she also found herself getting closer to Puck.

She did have to remind him constantly to not curse so much. And he liked putting his arm around her shoulder and stuff. It felt comfortable to her, but not romantic initially. He was actually nice if given the chance.

He played the guitar and let Rachel sing along with him sometimes. He also complimented her rather often. It was unfamiliar for Rachel to be complemented so frequently, but she was quite flattered and it boosted her self-confidence.

Overall, she was happy with the roommates that she was placed with. They really were incredible guys.

She got onto the elevator after her last class of the day. Her books were in her hand as she closed her eyes, imagining once again that she was in a wide open field. She was calm, cool and collected.

Until the elevator jerked violently to a stop. Rachel opened her eyes, hoping that the doors opened.

"Oh no," she whispered. "Oh _please _no!" She tossed her books to the ground before hitting the button on the elevator. When that did nothing, she hit all of the other buttons.

When the elevator still didn't move, she started panting.

"Ohmygod," she repeated over and over again. Her breaths were coming in short gasps and her chest was starting to hurt. The tears started falling as she broke into sobs.

This was her worst nightmare coming true.

In a moment of clarity, she pulled out her cell phone. She cried in relief when she realized she had a signal. In all of the scary movies, the person never had cell phone service when they needed it. But she did. And the first person she thought of calling was her roommate.

"Hey, Rach," he said. She could hear the smile in his voice.

"Finn," she panted.

"Whoa, whoa, what's wrong?" he asked quickly.

"I'm stuck… in the… elevator…" she panted. She could hear shuffling on the other end of the line.

"The Harrington one?" he asked.

"Yes," she cried.

"Look up and tell me what floor it's on," Finn said, sounding worried. She looked up and saw the number 4 illuminated.

"Four," Rachel panted.

"I'll call maintenance, okay," Finn said. "Can you just hang on and I'll call you right back?"

"I-I think so," she cried.

"Just try and calm down, Rach. You'll be okay," Finn said. "Just close your eyes and act like you're in a meadow."

"I already… tried!" she cried.

"I have to call maintenance but I'll call right back," Finn said.

"Okay," Rachel panted.

He hung up quickly and dialed as he jogged down the hallway toward the elevator. He told the maintenance department what happened and called Rachel back as quickly as he could.

"Finn?" she cried when she answered.

"Yeah, Rach. Help's on the way," he said.

"It hurts… to breathe," she panted. Her chest was heaving and aching as tears continued falling down her cheeks in endless streams.

"I _need_ you to calm down," Finn said firmly.

"I can't!" she practically yelled into the phone between pants. Finn then turned his head toward the elevator. Her voice was a little too clear.

"Hold on," he said. He put one ear to the elevator shaft and put his phone to the other ear. "Say something, Rachel."

"What?" she asked in a pant. That was all Finn needed to hear.

"I think you're between floors. I'm gonna try and open the doors, okay?" Finn said.

"Okay," she panted. Finn set his phone down on the ground before reaching out and digging his fingers between the two doors. It took some wiggling, but the doors spaced apart just enough so that Finn could grab the doors. Then, he pulled with everything he had and the doors slowly opened.

He now sounded like Rachel with how much he was panting. He then smiled when he realized that the elevator _was_ stuck between floors four and five.

"Rach, can you hear me?" he called.

"Yes," he heard her in a strangled voice. She was still freaking out. He bent down closer to the doors of the other elevator.

"I'm gonna need you to try and pull the doors open," Finn said. "I can pull from up here and we can get it open. Okay?"

"Yes," he heard her say quietly.

"Alright," he said. He reached out for the elevator doors and wedged his fingers in them. This door was a bit more difficult than the door to the floor, but Rachel was going to help. "On three, okay?" he asked once his fingers had wedged through. "One… two… three!" he shouted. Then, as before, he gathered his strength and pulled the doors apart. He could hear Rachel panting from being scared and from helping him open the doors.

The doors parted slowly and Finn could see the top of Rachel's head.

"Hey, I'm right here," Finn said. Rachel looked up at him and he could see the fear in her eyes. She was still breathing heavily and her face was covered in tears. "Keep pulling the doors, okay?"

He saw her nod as she continued to struggle to breathe normally. She grabbed the doors again and they pulled at the same time. The doors continued to open until they were wide enough that Finn was sure Rachel could squeeze through.

"That's good, Rach," Finn said. He reached both of his hands down toward her. "Give me your hands." She was still breathing heavily as she reached her hands up as far as she could. He could barely graze her fingers. "You're gonna have to step on your tippy toes," Finn said with a small smile. "You're too tiny."

Rachel didn't smile and Finn knew that it was because she was so afraid. She reached up while on her tippy toes and he finally grasped her hands with his own. Her hands were trembling in his.

"I'm gonna need you to jump, okay?" Finn said. Rachel nodded. "Alright, go!" Rachel jumped when he said go and Finn pulled her up. Her upper body was out of the elevator when Finn let go of one of her hands. He was glad she was wearing jeans today as he grabbed one of the belt loops and pulled her up.

He breathed a sigh of relief when she was finally out of the elevator. He was sitting on the ground and Rachel launched herself into his arms. He hugged her tightly as she sobbed into the crook of his neck.

"You're okay now," Finn murmured, rubbing her back soothingly. "I've got you." Her entire body was shaking.

It took at least five minutes before Rachel stopped crying. Finn still hugged her tightly.

"Thank you," she murmured as soon as she could speak.

"You're welcome," Finn said. She then extracted herself from his arms and they both stood up.

"That was terrifying," she said, wiping her eyes again.

"Yeah, but it's over now," Finn said comfortingly. Rachel nodded in agreement.

"No more elevators though," she said firmly.

"I knew you'd say that," Finn replied with a small smile. "Do you want to go to the dorm and get some water?" Rachel smiled at him, touched that he would remember that she was thirsty when she was sad.

"Can we wait here first? I left my books in there," she asked.

Finn laughed heartily. "You would be worried about your books," he said, shaking his head in amusement.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

After what became known as the "Elevator Incident," Rachel baked Finn a cake out of gratitude. She even offered to do his laundry, which Finn graciously declined.

Finn was a little pissed when Puck ate some of his "thank you for saving me" cake.

From that point forward, Rachel took the stairs.

Two weeks had passed and things were still tense between Finn and Quinn. It got to the point where everything that Finn did was wrong.

He chose the wrong movies.

He wore the wrong shirt.

He got her the wrong flowers.

Nothing was good enough.

That's why Finn was okay with sitting at home on a Friday night instead of going with Quinn somewhere only to get yelled at over something stupid.

The door to the apartment opened and Finn could hear Rachel and Puck talking.

"Just give me half an hour and I'll be ready," he heard Rachel say. Finn looked confused as Rachel walked into the living room with Puck right behind her. "Hey, Finn," she said happily before walking toward her room.

"Looks like you're on your own tonight," Puck said with a smirk.

"Why?" Finn asked.

"I'm taking Rachel to dinner," Puck said. Finn's heart stopped beating for a second.  
"Like a date?" he asked, trying to make his voice sound calm and uninterested.

"Yeah," Puck said, smiling a bit. "She's actually pretty cool once you get past all the crazy. And she's hot."

Finn was quiet for a moment. "Dude, just don't try and push her into anything," Finn said.

"By the end of the night, she'll be begging for me," Puck said with a smirk that made Finn feel uneasy. Puck then walked away and Finn heard his door close.

He couldn't let Rachel go through with this.

He got up off of the couch and walked to Rachel's door, knocking on it gently.

"Yes?" he heard her say.

"It's Finn. Can I talk to you for a second?" he asked.

"Of course. Just hold on," she replied.

Finn waited outside of her door for about a minute when she opened it up. Then, his heart started pounding. She was wearing a sexy black dress that hugged her body in all of the right places.

"Can you zip me up?" she asked, turning around.

Finn gulped. "Sure," he said in a bit of a shaky voice. He reached out and grabbed the tiny zipper with his large fingers and pulled it up slowly, covering the tan, sexy back that was right in front of him, just begging to be touched.

Finn had to remind himself about Quinn again.

"Thank you," Rachel said as soon as Finn let go of the zipper.

"No problem," Finn said.

She took a seat on the edge of her bed and grabbed a shoe off of the floor. It was an incredibly sex black heel. Finn gulped again.

Was she _trying_ to kill him?

"What did you want to talk about?" she asked as she slipped the other shoe on.

"Oh… uh, just about you and Puck," he said. "He told me you're going on a date."

"We are," Rachel said with a tiny smile. "You're alright here on your own, aren't you?"

"Yeah. I'll, uh, I'll be fine," he said. "I'm just worried about you."  
"Why?" Rachel asked with a laugh.

"It's just… Puck's _Puck_, you know?" he said.

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to need you to elaborate a bit on that," she said, sounding amused.

"He just… he can't be trusted," Finn said. "He'll take you out now and then sleep with you and then just dump you to the side so that he can sleep with someone else. I've seen him do it dozens of times."

"Finn, I am more than capable of handling myself. I'm an adult now and I can make my own decisions," she said, her voice losing its normal cheeriness.

Finn shook his head in confusion. "Wait… so you're going to sleep with him?" he asked, sounding worried.

"If I do or if I don't, it's none of your business, Finn," she said in a flat voice. "Last time I checked, Quinn was your girlfriend. Not me. So what I do shouldn't matter to you."

"But it does matter," Finn said quickly. "I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I appreciate your concern, but it's none of your business," Rachel said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to finish getting ready." Finn watched as she grabbed her makeup bag off of her dresser before walking into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.

Finn really wished that he didn't care so much.

It would hurt a lot less.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Finn wasn't sure if Rachel and Puck slept together that night. He turned his radio and fell asleep before they got back, not wanting to hear their sounds if they did sleep together.

The next day, when Puck tried to tell Finn about the night before, Finn cut him off and hold him that he didn't want to know.

Over the next week, Rachel seemed to be ignoring Finn, only saying "Hello" "Goodnight" and "Good morning" to him. Finn wondered why caring about someone was such a bad thing. Rachel acted like Finn showing concern was so offensive or something. It just didn't make any sense.

On top of Rachel not talking to him like she used to, Quinn wasn't talking to him much, either.

But if Finn was being honest with himself, Rachel not talking to him bothered him more than Quinn not talking to him.

But he was in a pretty great mood when his Musical Theory class was cancelled, meaning that he was done for the day an hour and a half earlier than usual. He walked across campus to the apartment with a smile on his face, looking forward to starting the weekend with a _Call of Duty _marathon. He was in such a great mood that he even considered letting Puck play with him.

That was until he walked into the living room of the apartment.

Quinn was straddling Puck's lap with her shirt off while they kissed.

"What the hell is going on?" Finn shouted, his pulse pounding.

Quinn and Puck broke apart from one another, both looking like they were panicking.

"Finn," Quinn said before jumping off of Puck's lap and putting her shirt back on.

"Dude, what the hell are you doing home?" Puck asked, standing up.

"You're really going to ask me that?" Finn yelled. "I should be asking you what the fuck is wrong with you! That's my girlfriend that you're making out with!"

"Finn, honey," Quinn said soothingly, coming closer to him.

"Don't even think about it," Finn snapped, stepping away from her. "How long has this been going on?" he demanded, looking from Quinn to Puck.

"Dude…" Puck said, lowering his voice.

"Answer me!" Finn shouted.

"A few months," Quinn confessed in a quiet voice.

"So, what? You thought you could string me along while you screwed around with my roommate behind my back?" Finn asked of Quinn. She stood there, at a loss for words. "Things haven't been great between us, but I can't believe you would do this to me."

"I'm so-"

"Don't even try and say you're sorry," Finn said quickly. He then turned to Puck. "What about Rachel? You just took her on a date a week ago."

"Your roommate?" Quinn asked, turning to Puck angrily.

"Oh, don't even say anything. You were still with Finn," Puck snapped at Quinn.

"It doesn't even fucking matter anymore!" Finn yelled. "I'm done with the both of you!"

Finn turned around and left the apartment in a huff, slamming the door behind him.

He had to talk to the only person he had left.

Rachel.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

"Finn!" Rachel said as she walked out of her last class. He was leaning against the wall, looking angry. "What are you doing here?" she asked in confusion.

"I need to talk to you," he said quietly.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, sensing the stress in his voice.

"You could say that," he laughed humorlessly.

"Come on," Rachel said. She grabbed his hand and led him out of the classroom building. Even though he was pissed, he couldn't help but smile at the feeling of her tiny hand in his large one. She took him to a spot under a tree where a tiny bench was.

"What happened?" she asked when they were both settled on the bench.

"Class was cancelled so I went to the dorm…"

"Okay. Keep going," Rachel prodded.

"I saw Quinn and Puck there. Her shirt was off and they were making out," he said, looking at Rachel. She frowned at him.

"I'm sorry," she said. She reached out and put her hand on his arm.

"Quinn admitted that it had been going on for months," Finn murmured. He looked down at the ground and was surprised when Rachel pulled him in for a hug. He maneuvered a bit before hugging her back. "I'm sorry to you, too," he said.

Rachel pulled back and looked at him questioningly. "Why?" she asked.

"I thought you and Puck were… you know… together," he said, shrugging.

"It's not like that, Finn," Rachel said. "After our date last week, we kissed, but it didn't feel right. He tried to insist on having sex anyway, but I turned him down. Well… I threatened to kick him in the balls first and then turned him down." Finn laughed.

"I'm proud of you for that," he admitted.

"Well, thank you," Rachel said with a smile. "I really am sorry about Quinn though. I know how much you cared about her."

_Not as much as I care about you_, he said to himself.

"Things haven't been that great with Quinn for a while, honestly… but it still hurts, you know," he said in a low voice.

"I know," she said just as quietly.

"You know what we should do?" Finn asked quickly.

"What?" Rachel asked in confusion.

"We should get wasted," Finn said. "You know, drown our sorrows in alcohol."

Rachel laughed, making Finn smile. Her laugh was awesome.

"I haven't drank since junior year in high school," she admitted.

"Well, you can just keep me company if you want," he suggested.

Rachel thought for a few moments. "What the hell," she said with a shrug. "I had three tests today. I deserve a break."

Finn smiled widely.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

Finn groaned. The sunlight was making his head pound. He rolled onto his stomach and smashed his face into the pillow, trying to block out all light.

He then realized that his pillow smelled funny.

It kind of smelled like Rachel.

He lifted his head up.

And his pillow turned pink.

Wait…

Finn turned to the side and saw brown hair sticking out from under the pink comforter.

Shit.

He was in Rachel's bed. He rolled over and sat up, realizing how soft her sheets were against his skin.

Oh, no…

He lifted up the blanket.

He was naked.

Son of a bitch.

He was in Rachel's bed. Naked. He looked on the floor and saw their clothes all over the place.

His gaze then zeroed in on a condom wrapper.

Holy fuck.

They totally had sex last night.

And he couldn't remember it.

He jumped when he heard Rachel's moan from next to him. She rolled toward him and opened her eyes slowly before closing them again.

They then opened quickly.

"What the hell are you doing in my bed?" she asked, her loud voice making the both of them wince as their hangovers made themselves known.

"I, uh…" Finn was completely at a loss for words.

Rachel's eyes bugged out as she lifted up the blanket.

"Ohmygod," she murmured. She then shifted her gaze to Finn. "Are you naked?" she asked. Finn nodded. "Did we… did we have sex?" she asked.

Making sure the blanket was covering him completely, he leaned off of the bed and grabbed the condom wrapper off of the floor before holding it up for her to see.

"Ohmygod," she moaned again. "I can't believe this happened. How much did I drink last night?"

"I think I remember telling you the case of beer was gone," he said. "So a lot, I guess."

Rachel raised a hand to her head. "I really don't mean to sound terrible, but my head is killing me and I just can't think about this right now," she said. "Can you go, please? We'll talk… later or something."

"O-okay," he said. He reached for his boxers and slid them on while under the blankets before climbing out of bed. He found his clothes and left her room without another word.

As he walked to his room, he couldn't hide his smile.

As soon as he was gone, Rachel laid back down with a moan.

Her pillow smelled like Finn.

She smiled.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

They didn't end up talking about it. They didn't exactly avoid each other, either, but they didn't acknowledge the fact that they slept together.

But both of them secretly wished that they had remembered it better.

For a while, things in the dorm were tense. Finn and Rachel both glared at Puck when they saw him. Puck tried to talk to Rachel, but she ended up shouting at him about how Finn was his best friend and sleeping with his girlfriend was the worst thing Puck could have done to him.

Rachel told Finn about yelling at Puck later that day. Finn had wished he could have been there to see it.

It took a couple of weeks before Finn could even tolerate having Puck in the same room.

Puck then explained that he had loved Quinn for a long time.

"Do you love Quinn? Or did you?" Puck asked as they sat on the couch.

Finn thought of Rachel. "I don't think I did," he replied.

He forgave Puck after that. But he still said that he didn't want Quinn hanging out at the apartment for a while.

He didn't love her, but that would just be awkward for everyone.

And Finn was pretty sure that Rachel was considering violence against Quinn for hurting Finn.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

A month and a half had passed since Finn woke up in Rachel's bed.

It was probably one of the best nights of his life and he couldn't even remember that much of it. He cursed himself for being an idiot.

Rachel walked into the apartment with her books in her hands.

"If someone told you to dress casually, would you wear a dress with heels or a skirt with flats?" she asked, setting her books down on the coffee table and taking a seat next to Finn.

"I really wouldn't wear either," he joked. "Why?"

"I have a date tonight," she said with a smile.

It takes Finn a couple of seconds before he can speak. "With who?" he asks. He hopes he knows the dude so he can hunt him down.

"His name's Jesse St. James," she said, the smile not leaving her face. "He's a theater major. He's also the lead in _West Side Story_. He's been asking me out for a while and I finally said yes."

_Because you haven't made a move,_ she added mentally.

"Is he taller than me?" Finn asked in a clipped voice.

"No," Rachel said in confusion. "But why does that matter?"

"No reason," Finn muttered. "But do you know him? Like, _really _know him?"

"We've been talking after classes," she replied. "I know enough about him to go on a date."

"But what if he just wants to get in your pants?" Finn asked, sounding worried.

"Can I got out with him first?" she asked. "He could be a perfect gentlemen!"

"Or he could be a sleaze ball," Finn muttered.

Rachel's quiet for a few moments. It really isn't like Finn to insult someone that he doesn't know. He's usually very accepting and kind. Unless…

"Finn Hudson, are you jealous?" she asked, sounding surprised.

Finn was going to say no. The word was on the edge of his tongue.

Then, he decided to be honest. What's the worst that could happen?

"Maybe," he said in a small voice.

"I don't get why this bothers you," Rachel said incredulously. _It's not like you act like you're interested in me anyway_, she said to herself.

Finn turns to her quickly. It's now or never.

"It bothers me because I love you," he said in a firm voice.

Rachel is taken aback. "Really?" she asked quietly.

Finn nodded. "I think I fell in love with you the first day you moved in," he admitted.

Finn watched as Rachel's look of surprise turned into a wide smile. Then, without warning, she lunged forward and practically attacked him with her lips.

He wasn't complaining.

Moments later, she pulled away from the kiss.

"I love you, too," she said in a breathless whisper. Finn smiled widely before wrapping his fingers in her hair and gently tugging her back toward him for another kiss.

Puck walked into the living room and saw Rachel's lips connected to Finn's. He saw Finn smiling like a doofus while Rachel made out with him.

"It's about damn time," Puck murmured with a smirk before walking into the kitchen.

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

A year and a half later.

Rachel lay on Finn's chest on their own bed in their own apartment. They had just moved in a week ago and had been busy breaking in their new bed every night.

Finn was getting ready to graduate soon, but Rachel was only about to be a junior. Instead of Rachel living in a dorm without Puck or Finn next year, they decided to find a place of their own. So far, things had been about as perfect as a relationship can be. With the occasional arguments, of course.

Rachel _was_ incredibly opinionated and had been on the debate team in high school. She and Finn bumped heads often; but they still ended up in bed together every night.

Now they both knew how incredible it was to have sex with one another in perfect detail.

She laid on his chest as his fingers lightly traced patterns on her back.

"That's pretty. Where'd you get that?" he asked, pointing to the shiny diamond ring on her finger.

"Oh, just this guy. It was very sweet. He took me to Central Park a few hours ago and proposed to me on Bow Bridge," she said with a serene smile.

"Was it everything you hoped it would be?" he asked before kissing her hair.

"It was perfect," she admitted. She then reached up to peck him on the lips. "I love you."

"Well, if the ring's any indication, I love you, too," he said with a chuckle.

"That's always good to hear," she joked. "Now, your fiancé's debut as Evita is tomorrow. She really needs her rest."

"Sure thing, baby," Finn said. He kissed her on top of the head again, holding her close.

He really needed to thank the person in charge of dorm assignments.

THE END

-GLEE-GLEE-GLEE-

A/N: And there it is! I really hope you enjoyed it! Please leave a review telling me if you did or didn't! Thanks for reading :)


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